Archive for the ‘#1 Go-To Recipes’ Category
King Oyster (Eryngii) Mushroom Steaks with Mayo
This is Japanese in origin, and is delicious! Don't be fooled by the name, these are not served with mayo, they are cooked in mayo. I made this on 4 Sep 2017 and was well received by the family. This is an adjust as you need recipe, like if using less mushrooms, use less mayo, etc.
Ingredients
- 6-8 King Oyster mushrooms, small to medium size is best
- 1-2 tablespoons mayo
- 1-2 tablespoons white wine
- black pepper, to taste
- soy sauce, to taste
- dried parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Trim off the root end and rinse the mushrooms and shake off excess water. Slice each one in half lengthwise.
- Heat a frying pan over medium heat and add the mayonnaise and the sliced mushrooms. Cook on both sides.
- Pour in the white wine, place a lid over the pan, reduce temp to low, let the mushrooms simmer until wilted, season with black pepper and a drizzle of soy sauce.
- Top with some parsley, serve as a side with rice or pasta.
Notes
Low cost.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Crab Cakes I
These are delicious! I made these on 4 Jan 2022, exactly as written, and used canned crab. Nothing short of perfect, I and the family loved these! Even a grand niece who does not care for seafood, loved the taste of these. Next test will be with imitation crab, then will test again with fresh cooked and picked crab. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 2½ tablespoons mayo
- 1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning, Shortcut
- ¼ cup celery, finely diced
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely minced
- 500 grams lump crab meat, fresh cooked, canned, frozen cooked, (1 lb)
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- cooking oil, as needed for frying
- tartar sauce, optional, Shortcut
Instructions
- To a mixing bowl, add the eggs, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, Old Bay, celery, and parsley in a large bowl and mix well.
- Drain and check the crab meat for any shell fragments, add the crab and panko to the wet mixture. (I used four 170 g (6 oz) cans, drained weight is 120 g (4¼ oz) that makes the 480 g (17 oz) which worked perfect for the recipe.
- Gently fold mixture together until just combined, being careful not to shred the crab meat.
- Use a ½ cup measuring spoon and scoop out mixture ½ cup, packed, add that to your hands and shape into a ball, place on a large plate and press down and shape the sides to make a patty. You will make 6 cakes using the ½ cup measuring spoon to measure. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat a large nonstick pan on medium heat and coat with the cooking oil. When oil is hot, place crab cakes in the pan and cook until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes per side.
- Serve with sides of your choice or with tartar sauce or lemon wedges.
Notes
I used canned crab that I shipped from the US, which is actually a product of Indonesia. It is here in the larger western stores for a hefty price as well. I will try this recipe with imitation then fresh cooked and picked crab. For now I will say this is High cost per serving using canned crab, and probably Fair cost per serving using imitation / fresh cooked crab. Crabs from a local fisherman would be the cheapest, buying canned would be costly.
Shortcuts: Old Bay Seasoning, Tartar Sauce.
Northern Thai Sausage (Sai Oua) I
This recipe is from a Thai brand (Lobo) seasoning pack to make this sausage, the recipe is on the back of the package, and the package even contains the collagen casing. I made this on 16 June 2017 and it is delicious! Lot of lemon grass flavor and not overly spicy, the Thai family really enjoyed this. The packet contains the collagen casings, there is 5 casings, already knotted on one end and are easy to use.
Ingredients
- 1 packet Northern Thai Sausage seasoning (Sai Uoa), Lobo brand
- 100 milliliters warm water
- 500 grams pork belly, skin removed, coarsely ground, (1 lb)
Instructions
- In a medium size bowl, dissolve the contents of the seasoning pack in the warm water. This is the seasoning pack used.
- Add the pork belly to the seasoning mix and blend well until sticky, use your hands for this, takes just a few minutes for this. Shape into 5 equal size balls.
- Now for the collagen casing, first, it is used dry, never soak them. I used a funnel when I made these as I have never used casings before. If you are experienced using casings, use the method of your choice. Grease up the funnel tube with vegetable for the first sausage, and fit the casing onto the tube all the way to the knotted end.
- Fill the casing with the pork mixture by pressing it into the funnel tube, pierce any air pockets with a pin or toothpick.
- Repeat for all 5 casings. Use kitchen string to tie off the ends. Five sausages ready for the grill.
- Cook on a charcoal grill over low heat until cooked through, or bake at 140 C (280 F) for 20 minutes. Slice diagonally and serve with sticky rice and vegetables such as cabbage, lettuce, or cucumber. These were grilled, Sai Krok on the top, Sai Oua on the bottom.
Notes
The seasoning packet for this is 37 Baht, and it includes the casing. The pork belly will cost about 70 Baht/500 grams. For 5 servings, this is about 63 cents per serving.
Variants: Beef, chicken, and shrimp can be used instead of pork. For shrimp, increase to 600 grams and do not use any water, just mix the seasoning packet into coarsely chopped shrimp.
From a recipe on a spice packet.
Spicy Chicken-in-Rice (Rice Cooker)
This is a recipe from a seasoning packet, Lobo brand. I made this on 1 Oct 2017 and I will state this will be my go to chicken and rice dish, very good flavor, next to no spiciness to it at all.
Equipment
- Rice Cooker
Ingredients
For the Chicken and Rice
- 500 grams chicken legs, or thighs, (1 lb)
- 1 packet seasoning mix, see Step 1
- 300 grams dry rice, 1½ cups of dry rice
Mixture used in the Dipping Sauce and Salad
- 4 tablespoons vinegar
- 4 tablespoons water
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the Dipping Sauce
- 3 green Bird's Eye chilies
- 3 cloves garlic
- 10 leaves mint
- 1 bunch fresh coriander leaves
- 3-4 tablespoons Mixture
For the Cucumber Salad
- 2 cucumbers, sliced
- 2 red Bird's Eye chilies, sliced
- 5 shallots, sliced
- remaining Mixture
Instructions
For the Chicken and Rice
- This is the brand of seasoning for this chicken, Lobo brand. This packet contains TWO packets inside, for 4 servings, only one packet is used, so for 26 Baht, you can get two 4 serving meals out of it. Great value.
- Place the chicken in a bowl and add the contents of 1 seasoning packet for 4 servings, use both packets for 8 servings. coat the chicken with the seasoning mix and let sit for 15 minutes.
- Put the rice in the rice cooker, add the chicken and mix into the rice. Add the appropriate amount of water and switch on the rice cooker to Cook. While it is cooking, prepare the dipping sauce and cucumber salad if desired.
Mixture used in the Dipping Sauce and Salad
- Add all of the Mixture ingredients to a small pot and bring to a boil and stir well.
For the Dipping Sauce
- Add the ingredients for the Dipping Sauce to a mortar and grind up with the pestle. Add 3-4 tablespoons of Mixture and stir well, pour this into a small serving bowl.
For the Cucumber Salad
- Add the Salad ingredients to a bowl and the remaining Mixture and mix well.
To Serve
- Place rice and a piece of chicken in a bowl with the dipping sauce and cucumber salad on the side. Enjoy.
Notes
The chicken will cost about 35 Baht/500 grams of legs. For 4 servings this is about 26 cents per serving, even less if using quarters.
Chicken Parm Stuffed Peppers
This is delicious! This is a great alternative to regular stuffed peppers. Not a $1 per serving meal due to the cheese used, but is certainly worth it. I made this on 1 June 2017 Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 3-4 bell peppers, any colors, halved, seeded
- 3-4 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, cubed
- 3 cups Mozzarella Cheese, shredded, divided
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 1/2 cups pasta sauce, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup chicken stock, fresh or from powder
- salt and pepper, to taste
- olive oil as needed
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200 C (390 F). Get out a 9x13 baking dish.
- Heat a skillet with a splash of olive oil and add the cubed chicken, season with salt and pepper as desired.
- Cook until just cooked through for tender chicken, drain any oil, I use a colander for this and just let the chicken sit in the colander until it is needed.
- Cut bell peppers in half and remove the stem and seeds. Place in a 9x13 baking dish, fit them in there tight.
- In a large bowl, combine 2 cups Mozzarella, Parmesan, garlic, pasta sauce, parsley, and red pepper flakes, and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Stir until combined, then gently fold in chicken.
- Spoon chicken mixture into halved bell peppers and sprinkle with remaining 1 cup Mozzarella cheese.
- Pour chicken broth into baking dish to help the peppers steam and cover the dish with foil.
- Bake until peppers are tender, about 1 hour. Uncover and broil 2 minutes.
- Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and Parmesan cheese, serve.
Notes
Chicken will cost about 75 Baht/kilo, that should be 5-6 breasts, get a kilo and use the rest in another recipe. The Mozzarella will cost about 280 Baht for two 200 gram blocks. For 4 servings, this is about $2.60 per serving.
Shortcut: Pasta Sauce.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly
My mother in law loves Chinese Five Spice Chicken, and loves it more when made using pork belly, so this is a slightly different recipe than what is on the spice pack. This is not a secret recipe or an internet recipe, this is a modified recipe based on the pack of spice you can buy in every town. The Lobo brand of spices have instructions in Thai and English on every spice packet I have used from them. I made this on 31 May 2017 and it was very well received by my mother in law, and it is delicious, my comments below. I did not get all the step by step photos so I will be making this again soon, so easy and inexpensive as well.
Ingredients
- 600-700 grams pork belly, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
- 7 hard boiled eggs, peeled
- 1 1/2 tablespoons 5 Spice Powder, rounded
- 6 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons light soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons black soy sauce
- water, as needed
- olive oil, as needed
- 1 package bean curd, this is tofu, amount is up to you, cut in 1 inch peices, optional
- 2 sticks cinnamon
- 1 whole star anise
Instructions
- Prepare the pork belly by slicing into 1 1/2 inch pieces, we used 700 grams. Place the meat in a bowl.
- In the bowl of meat, add the 5 Spice Powder. Rub that in with your fingers until all pieces are coated. This photo is just before I added the spice powder.
- In a large pot, heat a splash of olive oil then add the garlic and sugar, when the garlic is fragrant, about a minute, add the pork, cook for a few minutes turning a few times. You are browning them, not needing to cook through, that will happen later.
- Add the eggs, salt, light and black soy sauces, and bean curd if using, add enough water to nearly cover the eggs, and simmer for an hour. This photo is right after the eggs and water was added.
- At 1 hour, the eggs should be a light brown, check for tenderness of the pork, if tender, serve over rice, add some of the broth as well to the rice.
Notes
Prices can very with pork, if you go with a local vendor at an open market, you are getting fresh and much lower cost. Pork belly at Tesco is 220 Baht/kilo, the pork belly used in this recipe and in the photos, I purchased from an open market, 140 Baht/kilo. For this recipe the pork cost about 105 Baht/700 grams. For 4 servings this is about 77 cents per serving.
Modified from a recipe on a spice packet.
Homemade Labneh (think Sour Cream)
This is a Middle Eastern item made from strained yogurt. That's it! With strained plain full fat yogurt, you can make several items, and the item I am going to concentrate on is soft labneh which is basically sour cream. I have it from a good friend that has made this and it is a very close to sour cream. As my friend states "Can't have Mexican night without sour cream." I made this on 6 June 2017, and soft labneh is very close to sour cream, it is excellent and will be my Go-To recipe for sour cream. This makes about 800 g (28 oz) of sour cream.
Equipment
- Cheesecloth
Ingredients
- 8 containers plain yogurt, 135 gram (4¾ oz) each
- pinch salt, optional
Instructions
- For the yogurt, use plain, unflavored, full fat yogurt, NOT Greek yogurt. I used 2 packages of 4 containers each of Dutchie Original Yogurt, each container is 135 grams, so in total I used 1,072 grams of yogurt.
- Line a sieve with 2-3 layers of cheesecloth. Place the sieve on a large bowl. Add the salt, if using, to the yogurt and stir until smooth. Pour into the prepared sieve.
- Gather the edges of the cheesecloth together, twist and tie securely with string or a plastic clip and hang it above a bowl or let it just in the sieve. Cover the top of the bowl & sieve with plastic wrap.
- Place this into the fridge to allow the whey to drain out. How long you let it drain will determine what particular style of labneh you are making.
For Soft Labneh (think Sour Cream)
- Strain for 8-14 hours. This would provide a soft type of labneh with a consistency to that of Sour Cream. Check the consistency and taste during the time stated and make note of the time for future times you make this. When the consistency is good, remove from the fridge and place all the labneh in an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to a week. Use in place of sour cream in recipes.
For Firmer Labneh
- Strain for 24-48 hours will result in a Cream Cheese like consistency. Remove from the fridge and place all the labneh in an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to a week. This sounds like it would be good on a sandwich.
For Yogurt Cheese
- Strain for 48-72 hours will result in Yogurt Cheese, which is normally rolled into small balls, coated with herbs or spices and stored in olive oil. Store in the fridge for several weeks. These sound like they would make great appetizers.
For Greek-style Yogurt
- Strain for 3-4 hours will result in a Greek-style of yogurt. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week, use in recipes calling for Greek yogurt.
Notes
Used in Recipes Listed on this Site:
- Chicken Liver Stroganoff.
- Creamy French Dressing.
- Creamy Cucumber Salad, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Cottage Cheese Chicken Enchiladas, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Cream Cheese Chicken Enchiladas.
- Sheet Pan Shrimp Fajitas.
- Shchavel Borscht (Sorrel Soup).
- Mushrooms in Sour Cream Sauce, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Buffet Layered Salad.
- Herbed Zucchini Casserole, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Creamy Beef Gravy, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Hamburger Helper Shortcuts, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Best Chicken Enchiladas, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Cream Cheese Frosting, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Chicken & Stuffing Casserole.
- Tater Tot Casserole, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Quick Quesadillas, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Meatballs & Gravy III, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Creamed Corn Cornbread, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Pear Pie, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Swiss, Ham & Noodle Casserole.
- Noodles Romanoff, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Cucumber Radish Salad, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Russian Mushroom Julienne.
- Creamy Ham & Egg Casserole.
- Sausage Stroganoff.
- Russian Red Radish Salad.
- Chicken Ritz Casserole.
- Aush (Afghani Chili) (Slow Cooker).
- Ground Beef Stroganoff, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Brian's Ranch Dressing.
- Indian Butter Chicken.
- Sinfully Delicious Chicken Casserole, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Chicken Paprikash.
- Olive Cheese Bread.
- Dill Pickle Bread.
- Mexican Deviled Eggs.
- Hungarian Gulyás.
- Ultra Creamy Mac & Cheese (Slow Cooker), made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Fruited Salad Mold.
- Chicken Casserole (Slow Cooker).
- Fancy Chicken Salad, made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Macaroni Frank Salad Bowl.
Slow Cooker Sausage & Potatoes II
Potatoes and sausage, not only does this sound good, it is delicious! Use any sausage you like, use any potatoes you like. I made this on 7 May 2022 and was very well liked by the family! For this dish I use my large 6 quart slow cooker. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Equipment
- Slow Cooker (6+ quart)
Ingredients
- 1 kilo sausage links, cut into 1 inch pieces, (2 lb)
- 1 kilo potatoes, peeled, cut into 1 inch pieces, (2 lb)
- black pepper, as desired
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 6-12 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, Shortcut
- ¾ cup chicken stock, fresh or from powder
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- hot cooked spaghetti, for serving, optional
- 1-2 carrots, peeled and chopped, optional
Instructions
- Lightly oil or butter your slow cooker insert. Add the potatoes and spread out to make an even layer. Season with black pepper as desired. Optionally, you can add 1-2 chopped carrots along with the potatoes.
- Sprinkle the onions and garlic, over the potatoes.
- For those in Thailand, I use BMP brand, Combination Sausage Scrap, which I get Makro. It is three types of sausage and is good quality.
- Add the sausage in the final layer.
- In a mixing bowl, add the soup, broth, Worcestershire sauce and mix together. Pour the mixture over the sausage.
- Cover and cook on Low setting for 6-8 hours. Checking the tenderness of the potatoes at 6 hours, and continue cooking if needed for tender potatoes.
- Serve and enjoy.
- As a variant, serve with cooked spaghetti. This was requested by a niece living with us, and I must say, it is a great addition.
Notes
Figure about 150 Baht for good sausage. For 8 servings, this is about 50 cents per serving.
Shortcut: Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup.
Variants: 1. Serve with hot cooked spaghetti (highly recommended). 2. Add 1-2 chopped carrots.
Updated on 21 June 2022.
Coconut Rice (Rice Cooker)
Great tasting rice! I use a basic Cook / Warm 1 liter (1 quart) rice cooker.
Equipment
- Rice Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 cup jasmine rice, rinsed
- 1 cup coconut milk
- ½ cup water
- ½ teaspoon coconut oil
- pinch salt
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to your rice cooker and stir together.
- Cover and set to Cook setting. Let cooker complete the cook cycle, takes about 25-30 minutes,
- When the cooker switches to Warm setting, leave on Warm setting for 5 minutes, then unplug and leave cover on and let sit for 15 minutes to complete the cooking process.
- When ready to serve, remove the lid and fluff with a rice paddle, serve, and enjoy
Baked Lemon & Garlic Tilapia
Excellent tasting fish, can use any white fish you like, such as Pangasius, Barramundi, or even Tub Tim.
Ingredients
- 3-6 tilapia fillets, or any white fish fillets
- 6-8 cloves garlic, smashed and diced large
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, or lime juice
- 3 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- I bought a fresh Tilapia (live) from a vendor that came by the house. I filleted it (which is NOT the preferred way by the family) and got two nice thick fillets, removing the pin bones, I cut them out in a strip, resulting in 4 pieces. The head and back bone went to the brother in law and he made soup with that, so everything was used.
- Preheat your oven to 200° C (400° F). Get out a baking dish, size will depend on how many fillets you are using. I used an 8x8 Pyrex dish for 2 fillets which was perfect.
- Melt the butter in a small sauce pan. Pour half the butter into your baking dish along with 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice, mix and spread out.
- To the sauce pan, add the garlic and saute on low heat for about 1 minute. Add 3 tablespoons of the lemon juice, remove from heat and stir together.
- Place the fish in the baking dish, and season with oregano, salt, and pepper. Pour the lemon butter mixture on the fish and top with fresh parsley.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes, fish should just be starting to brown and should flake easily with a fork. Transfer to a plate, spoon some of the liquid over the fish, serve and enjoy.
Notes
Tilapia is low cost, if getting the fish from a open market, the seller will fillet for you for free most times. Tilapia can also be caught on rod and reel in many ponds, making the meal essentially free.